SEAOI Government Affairs Spring Luncheon

April 21, 2017 -

11:15am to 1:00pm

Infrastructure Spending and Construction in Illinois

Infrastructure spending and construction have become a hot topic both in Illinois and Washington, D.C. The recent Safe Roads Amendment to the Illinois constitution was passed with a large majority, albeit, not without controversy, receiving approval from nearly 80 percent of voters. But all sides seem to agree that Illinois has many unmet needs in infrastructure maintenance and repair. In light of this, the SEAOI Government Affairs Committee (GAC)/Structural Engineers Political Action Committee (SEPAC) Board of Directors is pleased to announce that Illinois Transportation Secretary Randall S. Blankenhorn will speak at the Spring Luncheon on Friday April 21, 2017.

About the Speaker:

Mr. Blankenhorn was appointed by Governor Bruce Rauner in January 2015. As head of the Illinois Department of Transportation, he leads an agency of 10 offices that serve the transportation needs of Illinois across multiple modes, in rural, suburban and urban environments. At IDOT, Blankenhorn oversees a $2.8 billion operating budget that supports a work force of 5,000 employees, with annual oversight of more than $3.2 billion in capital projects. Prior to his appointment, Mr. Blankenhorn was the executive director of the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning, leading that agency since its inception in 2006. At CMAP, Mr. Blankenhorn oversaw transportation, land use, housing, economic development, environmental and other quality-of-life issues in the seven-county region of Northeastern Illinois.

His appointment as Transportation Secretary represents a return to IDOT, after having worked at the agency for 22 years. While at IDOT, Mr. Blankenhorn served in a number of key positions in both the policy and planning divisions, eventually rising to the Bureau Chief of Urban Program Planning, coordinating the activities of the state’s 14 Metropolitan Planning Organizations. Mr. Blankenhorn was the point person for planning on a number of major infrastructure projects throughout Illinois, including the south extension of Interstate 355 in Will County, the new Mississippi River Bridge in Metro East, and the proposed South Suburban Airport in Chicago’s south suburbs.

Location:

University Club76 East Monroe St.Chicago, IL 60603

Registration:

The cost for the luncheon is $75. The event begins at 11:15am with networking and a cash bar. Luncheon will be served at 11:45, and the presentation will begin at noon.

GAC/SEPAC represent the interests of the structural engineering profession in the political and legislative arenas in Illinois as an independent, bipartisan committee dedicated to the protection of the public health, safety, and welfare; the representation of Structural Engineers in relevant government activities; and the preservation and advancement of the Structural Engineering profession.